Microsoft shares guidance on upcoming Publisher deprecation

Microsoft has published guidance for users of Microsoft Publisher as it will no longer be supported after October 2026 and removed from Microsoft 365.

Specifically, the products to be deprecated are Publisher for Microsoft 365, Publisher 2021, 2019, 2016, 2013, 2010, and 2007, and also 2010 and 2013 Developer.

Microsoft Publisher is an Office application designed for layout-focused projects and visually rich print materials. Compared to Word, it provides better layout control, an extensive set of pre-designed templates, and convenient drag-and-drop functionality.

The product is popular among non-professional designers in education (schools), churches, hobbyists/home users, nonprofit and community organizations, and small businesses.

Microsoft had announced plans to sunset Publisher since last year, but as the time approaches, the tech giant has now shared additional information on what impacted users can do not to lose their projects.

The main recommendation is to convert existing Publisher files (.pub) to PDF or Word formats, depending on how much further editing they need.

To do this, open the said files, go to 'File' > 'Save as', and select the file type (DOCX or PDF) and location to save it.

For large sets of files where doing this process individually can be cumbersome, Microsoft recommends automating the process by means of a macro.

The tech company acknowledges the existence of third-party conversion tools but notes that these aren't officially supported. Microsoft also warns about their varying quality and consistency.

Microsoft recommends that impacted users replace Publisher with Word or PowerPoint, although these solutions cannot accommodate some use cases at the same level.

The company has shared the following information on how you can achieve a certain task in another Microsoft Office application:

I want to create...	Recommended App
Ads or Flyers	Word, PowerPoint or Designer
Brochures	Word or PowerPoint
Banners, Signs, Posters	PowerPoint or Designer
Certificates	Word or PowerPoint
Business cards	Word or PowerPoint
Business invoices, applications and forms	Word
Calendars	Word or PowerPoint
Envelopes	Word
Labels	Word
Letterhead	Word
Newsletter	Word
Programs, Folded Paper Projects	Word
Cards (Greeting, Compliment, etc.)	Word, PowerPoint or Designer

For more advanced and specialized projects that Microsoft Office applications cannot support, users can also try third-party cools like Canva (subscription), Adobe InDesign (subscription), and Affinity Publisher (one-time payment).

The updated FAQ page in the Publisher's announcement explains that those who wish to continue using the product and have the 'Perpetual' version may do so indefinitely outside of Microsoft 365. 

However, there will be no security updates, new features, or technical support after October 2026.